The last couple of weeks have been mostly off. I've been doing some mountain biking with varying degrees of success, I've gone on a couple hikes, and last night, I went for my first run in nearly a month. While it felt pretty good when I was doing it (a very easy 6 miles on the trails in 52 minutes), I am a little sore this morning. I'm hoping that by stepping up the core exercises, stretching, and interspersing the runs with bike rides, I'll be able to get going again.
Our trip to Mount Rainier is now officially on the schedule. We put in for a permit to summit on Wednesday, July 25. That gives us time to drive up there, maybe learn a thing or two about mountaineering (I've never done the roped-up, crampon thing before), climb the mountain, and then have a couple of days to drink beer and wind our way back home. Looks like I'll be putting in some weekend hours to make up for that week. Oh well. Worth it.
This is a pretty quick little update. It's difficult to keep a training blog when one hasn't been training. I've been flirting with expanding my horizons. Running is my absolute first love, and always will be, but there are so many other things and adventures out there. The mountaineering thing in particular really fascinates me. I can see myself really getting into bagging peaks. I've also been enjoying the biking; while it doesn't give me quite the same euphoric feeling as running, it's pretty dang fun to bomb down trails and try to stay upright. I also just read Anton's blog about skyrunning in Europe. That seems like something I can get behind.
As for the running thing, I have added the Happy Jack Endurance Races to my schedule July 7-8. Alec (aka Journeyman Adventures) has an old school ultra party planned for the event. Come out and join for any of the following: 24 hour run, 12 hour run, 6 hour run, or straight up 100M. I'll be manning the aid station with Party Captain Sandra, who is beside herself with excitement to provide participants with a kick-ass aid station atmosphere. She's got big ideas! I hope to partake in the 6-hour event between my shifts at the aid station. What's better than running through the mountains for six hours in the middle of the night? Nothing, that's what.
I still have Pikes Peak on the schedule. I'll try to get in what shape I can for it, and then just do it. I'm going to try to shelve the competitiveness for the time being. It's what caused this whole injury mess in the first place. And while I would be lying if I said I didn't want to run fast and do well in races, I also have figured out that killing myself, injuring myself to do so isn't worth all this time being unable to run. I'd rather be up running trails conservatively than running a decent half-marathon and then not being able to run for six weeks. I've got to get past that old mentality. See if this old dog can learn a new trick or two.
There are many things to do and see. Hopefully some time outside will help me relax and be less anxious. I have another calming influence that has come into my life. I don't know, when I'm around her, I just feel better. About everything. That's a heck of nice feeling.
I'll bring some monthly mileage figures into this post later this week. I haven't done much, but I have done something.
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Injury Re-evaluations
To get to the point, I was dumb and hurt myself. Apparently a week consisting of thrashing myself at Horsetooth, being too sore to run for a couple of days, and then deciding to hop in a 5K that following weekend was too much for my right hip flexor to handle. Whatever I did to it (I don't know definitively since an MRI is not an option), I messed it up pretty good. Two weeks ago, I tried running on it but could only get about thirty minutes out of it before I couldn't lift the leg. I finally went to the doctor last week and was told that I strained and possibly tore the muscle. It was recommended that I lay off for 4-6 weeks and try to do some physical therapy. PT is something I'm not sure my insurance would cover so I'm not sure I will pursue that route.
The big issue here is that this pretty much takes me out of Bighorn. Pilot Hill is off the schedule as well. I'm trying to get outside and at least hike, but even that aggravates my hip after a couple of hours. I've been commuting on my bike now that the weather is finally decent again, and so far that doesn't seem to bug me too bad. So, I am going to head up to the trails and see if I remember how to mountain bike. It's been a few years since I was last in the saddle, but I need to do something. I have this over-abundance of energy that's driving me crazy.
As for Bighorn, I'm going to try to do it, but if I can't get many miles in before then, I'll have to do something else. I still want to make the trip. Maybe I can go up, hang out, cheer, maybe crew some of the other guys. Maybe, if I feel decent, I can pace Fuller at some point during the hundred. I don't know.
I'm trying to remain optimistic, but it's hard. Especially with the weather being great lately, all I want to do is go run trails. This has lead me to make an choice: no more fucking road races. I'm blaming Horsetooth and Jackalope Loop 5K for this (as well as my own stupidity). I spent a few months training for a trail ultra just to get hurt pounding myself on the pavement. That's pretty stupid. I had a good race at Horsetooth and got excited about it. My old competitive self took over and now I get to sit on my ass. From now on, it's trails, man. No more pavement.
Here's what I did before I got hurt:
April 23-April 29: 37 miles in 5 runs in 4:37.
April 30-May 6: 24 miles in 4 runs in 2:59.
January: 205 (24:42)
February: 190 (22:28)
March: 133 (18:49)
April: 197 (23:53)
Year to Date: 725 (79:52)
I do still have a busy summer planned, and I may sacrifice some running to focus on other things. Part of my hike last Wednesday was spent bouldering around Turtle Rock. I haven't climbed rocks in many years. It's something Kevin and I used to do quite a bit. I guess that's one of the things I stopped doing because it reminded me of him (like how Jason doesn't go bowling because it reminds him of bowling with the guys in college). I had fun doing it. It's fun and challenging to pick your routes and adapt on the fly. And also trying not to fall. That's pretty important.
I also put in an hour on Thursday on The Bitch. I hiked most of it but put in about 15 minutes of light jogging throughout. Saturday, Elizabeth and I went on a two hour hike on the Little Laramie trails in the Snowys. The last half hour of that saw my speed decrease thanks to my leg crapping out. That was made better with the obligatory pizza and PBR at the Bear Tree in Centennial.
The biking is something else I used to do often. I grew up on the bike, doing 100 mile races in my early teens. Then I got into running and moved away from the bike. It's still fun, though, and I figure some cross training once in awhile wouldn't hurt.
Hiking and backpacking are making a comeback as well. Elizabeth and I are finalizing plans the second or third week of July to summit Mt. Rainier. I'm really looking forward to that, but I feel like I have some work to do. Running fitness doesn't necessarily translate to hiking/climbing/biking fitness, so I need to get out with the pack and do some work. Luckily, I have a great partner for this.
Other things coming up: Bret's bachelor party is in Durango the weekend of June 9 and 10. I'm going to try to make it down, but it's a long drive, and with Bighorn the following weekend and the actual wedding in the Grand Canyon on the 30th, I may be at a premium when it comes to a) how much work I can actually miss, and b) money (which is directly tied to a). Particularly since the Rainier trip will comsume the better part of a whole week, I may need to be more conservative. Looks like it's a Pabst Blue Ribbon diet from here on out. HAHA!
Also, Murder By Death make their return to the region at the Bluebird Theater on August 16. Picked up my tickets yesterday. Seventh time seeing them, and I plan to continue catching their shows in the area as long as they keep playing them.
The big issue here is that this pretty much takes me out of Bighorn. Pilot Hill is off the schedule as well. I'm trying to get outside and at least hike, but even that aggravates my hip after a couple of hours. I've been commuting on my bike now that the weather is finally decent again, and so far that doesn't seem to bug me too bad. So, I am going to head up to the trails and see if I remember how to mountain bike. It's been a few years since I was last in the saddle, but I need to do something. I have this over-abundance of energy that's driving me crazy.
As for Bighorn, I'm going to try to do it, but if I can't get many miles in before then, I'll have to do something else. I still want to make the trip. Maybe I can go up, hang out, cheer, maybe crew some of the other guys. Maybe, if I feel decent, I can pace Fuller at some point during the hundred. I don't know.
I'm trying to remain optimistic, but it's hard. Especially with the weather being great lately, all I want to do is go run trails. This has lead me to make an choice: no more fucking road races. I'm blaming Horsetooth and Jackalope Loop 5K for this (as well as my own stupidity). I spent a few months training for a trail ultra just to get hurt pounding myself on the pavement. That's pretty stupid. I had a good race at Horsetooth and got excited about it. My old competitive self took over and now I get to sit on my ass. From now on, it's trails, man. No more pavement.
Here's what I did before I got hurt:
April 23-April 29: 37 miles in 5 runs in 4:37.
April 30-May 6: 24 miles in 4 runs in 2:59.
January: 205 (24:42)
February: 190 (22:28)
March: 133 (18:49)
April: 197 (23:53)
Year to Date: 725 (79:52)
I do still have a busy summer planned, and I may sacrifice some running to focus on other things. Part of my hike last Wednesday was spent bouldering around Turtle Rock. I haven't climbed rocks in many years. It's something Kevin and I used to do quite a bit. I guess that's one of the things I stopped doing because it reminded me of him (like how Jason doesn't go bowling because it reminds him of bowling with the guys in college). I had fun doing it. It's fun and challenging to pick your routes and adapt on the fly. And also trying not to fall. That's pretty important.
 |
| Lovely afternoon on Turtle Rock. |
The biking is something else I used to do often. I grew up on the bike, doing 100 mile races in my early teens. Then I got into running and moved away from the bike. It's still fun, though, and I figure some cross training once in awhile wouldn't hurt.
Hiking and backpacking are making a comeback as well. Elizabeth and I are finalizing plans the second or third week of July to summit Mt. Rainier. I'm really looking forward to that, but I feel like I have some work to do. Running fitness doesn't necessarily translate to hiking/climbing/biking fitness, so I need to get out with the pack and do some work. Luckily, I have a great partner for this.
Other things coming up: Bret's bachelor party is in Durango the weekend of June 9 and 10. I'm going to try to make it down, but it's a long drive, and with Bighorn the following weekend and the actual wedding in the Grand Canyon on the 30th, I may be at a premium when it comes to a) how much work I can actually miss, and b) money (which is directly tied to a). Particularly since the Rainier trip will comsume the better part of a whole week, I may need to be more conservative. Looks like it's a Pabst Blue Ribbon diet from here on out. HAHA!
Also, Murder By Death make their return to the region at the Bluebird Theater on August 16. Picked up my tickets yesterday. Seventh time seeing them, and I plan to continue catching their shows in the area as long as they keep playing them.
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